Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1518643
maltatoday | SUNDAY • 7 APRIL 2024 6 INTERVIEW Myriam Spiteri Debono: 'Something good needs to come out of Daphne Caruana Galizia's death' ON 4 April, notary Myriam Spiteri Debono took the oath of office and as- sumed her role as President of the Re- public. In her first speech, she touched on sen- sitive topics, including corruption, the influx of foreign workers, and the deaths of Jean Paul Sofia and Daphne Caruana Galizia. Now, in an interview with MaltaToday, the new president continues to elaborate on how the murder of Daphne Caruana Galizia, as well as that of Karin Grech and Raymond Caruana, left deep wounds in the country. In a measured tone, she says all three murders differed. There was a clear mo- tive to the murder of Karin Grech, while Spiteri Debono describes the murder of Raymond Caruana as an "act of bravado". But in the case of Daphne Caruana Gal- izia, the president notes that the protec- tion of the media came into question. She insists journalists must feel protected by Malta's "democratic set-up". On constitutional reform, Spiteri Debono acknowledges her predecessor's work to set up a constitutional convention that failed to take off because the two ma- jor parties could not agree on who should captain it. She tells me that she will try to bring the two parties together again. But she insists this does not depend on her will alone but on the willingness of the two parties to reach consensus. Briefly touching on neutrality, the Pres- ident says Malta can promote peace and remain neutral despite the EU's push for increased military spending. In this re- gard, she believes the country must "stick to the letter of the Constitution". Having been president of Nisa Laburis- ti during the 1990s, Spiteri Debono says women have made significant progress in society, with the biggest step forward hap- pening when women started to enter the workplace. However, there is a lot more to be done, particularly for women in public life, she tells me. She notes the work-life balance challenges among working women, which are amplified when those women also contribute to political life. When asked about potential changes to the functioning of L-Istrina and the Mal- ta Community Chest Fund Foundation, Spiteri Debono answers sincerely: "I don't know." However, she is open to the idea of change if it is done for the better, or to achieve more efficiency. She was sworn in as Malta's 11th President of the Republic and 24 hours later Myriam Spiteri Debono sat down with NICOLE MEILAK to discuss her past and her future. The best tribute that we can pay for Daphne's life is to build the foundations so that whoever has the same profession she had can feel protected by the democratic set- up of our country.